“Mindset is important, so we’re going to stay on the balls of our feet and punch like hell”, McCarthy said.
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Late Sunday night, after Rodgers was central to Green Bay’s inept performance on offense in its 17-14 loss at the Minnesota Vikings, the veteran quarterback tried to calm the early-season concerns out of Packers Nation.
“It’s just devastating to see that happen to an important player on our team, but you just have to prepare like you’re starting and that’s what I did, just tried to go out there and execute”, Asiata said Monday.
The raucous crowd at U.S. Bank Stadium fell silent when Peterson hobbled off the field in the third quarter. Once trainers got a look at his leg in the locker room, the player was ruled out for the rest of the game.
McKinnon and Asiata combined for 1,108 rushing yards on 277 carries in 2014, when Peterson missed 15 games after being indicted on child injury charges. As for Peterson, he rushed for 31 and 19 yards while averaging 1.6 per carry in each game. He attempted a sliding tackle on Vikings running back Matt Asiata with less than two minutes remaining and immediately motioned to the bench.
Guess who was the more productive quarterback on Sunday night?
“I think we’re close, at times”, Rodgers said. “But we’ll get there”.
Still, the Packers are faced with trying to remedy an offense that has been out of sorts in their first two games.
Bradford put up a glowing stat line in the win over Green Bay, completing 22 out of 31 passes for 286 yards and throwing two touchdowns, with no interceptions. The fact that both of those running backs are still in the Vikings’ stable is a good place to start.
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– Rather than entrusting two-time NFL MVP to find a short completion, or a handoff to 234-pound Eddie Lacy, McCarthy opted to go with 218-pounder James Starks on a power play. They may struggle until the offensive line improves, but the combo’s proven production means the sky isn’t completely falling in Minnesota. But as Diggs was hauling in the ball from Bradford a few eyes may have missed they play as they were watching future Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson being helped into the locker room with an injury to his right knee. He outplayed Packers star Aaron Rodgers and inspired teammates by hanging in against the constant pressure, taking hits time and again and still throwing bullets to his receivers, including emerging star Stefon Diggs. “So, we’re going to trust the process and believe we can get this thing turned around”.
